One of the chief threats of lava flows to property owners is that the flows may burn buildings and homes even if the flow doesn't reach the structure. This house caught fire from the intense heat of an advancing `a`a flow (note red glow of flow left of the house).

Basalt has the highest temperature of any lava, typically between about 1170-1100°C (~2140-2000°F). The other lava types (andesite, dacite, and rhyolite) form cooler flows with temperatures between about 1000-800°C (~1800-1500°F); some flows can still move slowly at temperatures as low as about 600°C (~1100°F).